Background

Impact of the human element on shipping safety

In the CyClaDes project the issue of "human element factors in shipping safety" is addressed
by an international consortium assembled to represent critical stakeholders in the yard, supplier, operator, and
seafarer communities along with industrial and/or academic experts on ergonomics and work space design,
classification societies, and a flag state administration.

The consortium will evaluate the impact of the human element on shipping safety across all phases of the design
and operational life cycle. The goal is to identify approaches, technologies, and innovative solutions to aid the
design process, overcome implementation barriers, and improve operational procedures. Initial analyses
will be performed to identify and describe how tasks and processes are completed in the real world environment,
in reference to existing guidelines when available. Qualitative and quantitative methodologies will be utilized
to examine sea farer operations including those on the bridge but with a focus on the engine room and other ship
areas that are typically neglected. Additional analyses will be conducted at the stakeholder level to examine
barriers to guideline implementation, namely what are the factors that prohibit existing guidelines from being
implemented across the acquisition, design, and deployment stages. The results will be documentation of best
practices, worst practices, and problem areas of focus. In a subsequent step these results will be
utilized to develop a framework for integrating human factors into the design and operation of ships and ship
systems. A crosswalk of best practices and design issues will be evaluated for implementation recommendations
from the perspectives of human-centered design, resilience engineering, training methodologies, and operational
procedures and tools (e.g., for inspection guidance). The needs of specific stakeholders in the design and
operation of ships and ship systems will be supported in the following ways: Designers: by providing
guidelines and best practices for the user-centered design of safety-relevant aspects of ships and ship systems
Operators and maintainers: by considering end user needs during acquisitions,

by providing training for their crews,

by providing recognition of best practices

End users: by implementing methodologies and processes for incorporating user input throughout the entire
design process

by providing novel kinds of training approaches for crew members.

by promoting the development user-friendly work stations and processes to increase utility, usability,
reduce errors, and increase user satisfaction.

Rule-makers and authorities: by developing an approach for a more comprehensive consideration of human
element analysis in the context of the rule making process.